Lily plant named ‘Tiny Bee’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct cultivar of Asiatic Hybrid Lily plant named ‘Tiny Bee’, characterized by its medium to large plant size; vigorous growth habit; freely flowering habit; bright yellow-colored tepals that are slightly recurved; and good postproduction longevity.

Botanical classification/cultivar designation: Lilium hybrida cultivar Tiny Bee.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Asiatic Hybrid Lily plant, botanically known as Lilium hybrida, and hereinafter referred to by the name ‘Tiny Bee’.

The new Asiatic Hybrid Lily is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in 't Zand, The Netherlands. The objective of the breeding program was to develop new potted Asiatic Hybrid Lily plants with erect flowers, attractive flower coloration and good postproduction longevity.

The new Asiatic Hybrid Lily originated from a cross-pollination in 1995 of an unnamed proprietary Asiatic Hybrid Lily, not patented, as the female, or seed, parent with an unnamed proprietary Asiatic Hybrid Lily, not patented, as the male, or pollen, parent. The cultivar Tiny Bee was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a flowering plant within the resultant progeny of the cross-pollination in a controlled environment in 't Zand, The Netherlands in May, 1998.

Asexual reproduction of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily by bulb scales in a controlled environment in 't Zand, The Netherlands since November, 1998, has shown that the unique features of this new Asiatic Hybrid Lily are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The cultivar ‘Tiny Bee’ has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature and light intensity without, however, any variance in genotype.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of ‘Tiny Bee’. These characteristics in combination distinguish ‘Tiny Bee’ as a new and distinct cultivar of Asiatic Hybrid Lily:

-   -   1. Medium to large plant size; vigorous growth habit.     -   2. Freely flowering habit.     -   3. Bright yellow-colored tepals that are slightly recurved.     -   4. Good postproduction longevity.

Plants of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily differ from plants of the parent selections primarily in plant height as plants of the parent selections are shorter than plants of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily.

Plants of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily can be compared to plants of the Asiatic Hybrid Lily cultivar Butter Pixie, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,422. In side-by-side comparisons conducted in 't Zand, The Netherlands, plants of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily differed from plants of the cultivar Butter Pixie, in the following characteristics:

-   -   1. Plants of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily were taller than plants         of the cultivar Butter Pixie.     -   2. Plants of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily had smaller flower buds         than plants of the cultivar Butter Pixie.     -   3. Plants of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily flowered earlier than         plants of the cultivar Butter Pixie.     -   4. Plants of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily and the cultivar Butter         Pixie differed in flower coloration.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTOGRAPH

The accompanying colored photograph illustrates the overall appearance of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily, showing the colors as true as it is reasonably possible to obtain in colored reproductions of this type. Colors in the photograph may differ slightly from the color values cited in the detailed botanical description which accurately describe the colors of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily. The photograph comprises a side perspective view of a typical flowering plant of ‘Tiny Bee’ grown in a container.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

In the following description, color references are made to The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, 2001 Edition, except where general terms of ordinary dictionary significance are used. The aforementioned photograph and following observations and measurements describe two month-old plants grown in 't Zand, The Netherlands under commercial practice in a glass-covered greenhouse. Plants were grown at a minimum temperature of about 15° C. and the average daylength was about 14 hours. Measurements and numerical values represent averages for typical flowering plants. The photograph and the description were taken during the late spring.

-   Botanical classification: Lilium hybrida cultivar Tiny Bee. -   Parentage:     -   -   Female, or seed, parent.—Unnamed proprietary selection of             Lilium hybrida, not patented.         -   Male, or pollen, parent.—Unnamed proprietary selection of             Lilium hybrida, not patented. -   Plant description:     -   -   Plant form/growth habit.—Upright flowering plant; single             erect flowering stem with a terminal cluster of flowers.             Medium to large plant size. Vigorous growth habit.         -   Plant height, soil level to top of flowers.—About 45 cm.         -   Plant diameter.—About 26 cm.         -   Flowering stems.—Internode length: About 1.2 to 1.4 cm.             Texture: Smooth, glabrous. Color: 143B.         -   Leaves.—Arrangement: Alternate; simple; sessile. Quantity of             leaves per plant: About 40. Length, lower leaves: About             7 cm. Width, lower leaves: About 1.2 cm. Length, upper             leaves: About 13 cm. Width, upper leaves: About 1.9 cm.             Shape: Lanceolate. Apex: Acute. Margin: Entire. Texture,             upper and lower surfaces: Glabrous, smooth; leathery.             Venation pattern: Parallel. Color: Developing and fully             expanded leaves, upper surface: 139A. Developing and fully             expanded leaves, lower surface: 144A. Venation, upper and             lower surfaces: Similar to lamina.         -   Bulbs.—Diameter: About 14 to 16 cm. Texture: Smooth. Color:             Close to 155D. -   Flower description:     -   -   Flowering habit.—Terminal single flowers arranged on a             raceme on long, mostly erect and strong flowering stems.             Flowers slightly fragrant; tepals not persistent; gynoecium             persistent. Flowers face mostly upright.         -   Natural flowering season.—Plants flower in June in The             Netherlands. Plants can be flowered year-round in the             greenhouse and forced to bloom about 60 to 65 days after             planting bulbs.         -   Flower longevity on the plant.—About 10 to 14 days.         -   Flower buds.—Length: About 6.5 cm. Diameter: About 2.2 cm.             Circumference: About 5.7 cm. Shape: Lanceolate. Texture:             Smooth, glabrous. Color: 13B; midribs, greenish shading.         -   Flowers.—Quantity of flowers per flowering stem: Freely             flowering; about seven to nine. Shape: Funnel-shaped. When             fully opened, flowers flatten and reflex slightly; with             development, tepal apices become slightly ruffled. Diameter:             About 14 cm. Depth (height): About 5 cm.         -   Perianth.—Quantity/arrangement: Six tepals per flower;             imbricate. Tepal length, inner tepals: About 9.4 cm. Tepal             length, outer tepals: About 9.2 cm. Tepal width, inner             tepals: About 4.1 cm. Tepal width, outer tepals: About             4.2 cm. Tepal shape: Lanceolate. Tepal apex: Acute. Tepal             margin: Entire. Tepal texture, upper and lower surfaces:             Smooth, glabrous; leathery. Tepal color: When opening, upper             surface: 16A; venation, 16B; spots towards the base, 187A.             When opening, lower surface: 16B. Fully opened, upper             surface: 16A; midrib, 17A; venation, 16B; spots towards the             base, 187A. Fully opened, lower surface: 16B.         -   Pedicels.—Angle: About 45° from vertical. Strength: Strong.             Length: About 4 to 6 cm. Diameter: About 5 mm. Texture:             Smooth, glabrous. Color: 146A.         -   Reproductive organs.—Stamens: Quantity per flower: Six.             Filament length: About 5.2 cm. Filament color: 20A. Anther             length: About 2.2 cm. Anther color: 183C. Pollen color:             168B. Pistils: Quantity per flower: One. Style length: About             3.5 cm. Style color: 1B. Stigma color: 24C.         -   Fruits/seeds.—Fruit and seed development has not been             observed. -   Disease/pest resistance: Some resistance to Botrytis and Pythium has     been observed on plants of the new Asiatic Hybrid Lily. Resistance     to pest and other pathogens common to Asiatic Hybrid Lilies has not     been determined. 

1. A new and distinct cultivar of Lily plant named ‘Tiny Bee’, as illustrated and described. 